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TECO Coal Reports on Mine Accident, Resulting Fatality

HAZARD, KENTUCKY, February 16, 2006

TECO Coal, a subsidiary of TECO Energy, Inc. (NYSE: TE), reported that this morning, one of its team members lost his life in an accident at its Hazard 4 mine, part of TECO Coal’s Perry County Coal Corporation in Hazard, Kentucky.

At 8:25 a.m. Eastern time, Tim Caudill, 33, a roof bolter employed by Perry County Coal since 2001, was working to relocate equipment from one mining location to another when a section of the roof fell from between roof bolts, causing rock and debris to strike Caudill. There were no other injuries. Mine Safety and Health Administration officials at the Hazard Kentucky Field Office and Hazard Office of Mine Safety and Licensing officials were notified of the incident at 8:47 am.

Caudill’s teammates, all of whom are trained in emergency response, began rescue efforts immediately. Once he was removed from the debris, the team began performing CPR. Ultimately, their efforts were unsuccessful. Family members were notified quickly following the accident and were present at the mining site when he was removed from the mine at 10:30 am.

TECO Coal President Jim Shackleford said, “We can’t begin to imagine what a tragedy this is for Tim’s family, including his wife, Vivian, and his children, Jeremy and Leslie. The heart of every man and woman at TECO Coal goes out to Tim’s family at this time of profound and shared grief. He was a valued member of our team.”

“We pride ourselves on our safe work environment, and this is a highly unusual situation for our company. More than anyone, we want to understand what happened, and we are fully cooperating with federal and state regulatory agencies, while conducting our own company investigation,” Shackleford added.

Corbin, Kentucky-based TECO Coal is the coal mining and synthetic fuel production business of TECO Energy, Inc., a diversified energy-related holding company traded on the New York Stock Exchange and based in Tampa, Florida.

TECO Energy owns regulated utility businesses, complemented by a family of unregulated businesses. Its principal subsidiary, Tampa Electric Company, is a regulated utility with both electric and gas divisions (Tampa Electric and Peoples Gas System). Other subsidiaries are engaged in waterborne transportation, coal and synthetic fuel production and electric generation and distribution in Guatemala.